436 PHILOSOPHICAL TRANSACTIONS. [aNNO 17Q4. 



White I;ic has a smell only when made hot, and it is a different one from that of 

 bees-wax. Bees-wax is less brittle and hard than white lac. The former is ge- 

 nerally specifically lighter than the latter : for bees-wax often floated on cold 

 water, but purified lac fell to the bottom. Bees-wax melts at about 142", and 

 therefore in a few degrees less caloric than white lac. Bees-wax does not adhere 

 so firmly to different bodies as white lac. Yellow bees-wax can be rendered 

 white by exposure to the solar light, or by oxygenated muriatic acid, but this lac 

 could not be bleached. Bees-wax formed a soap-like mass by union with pot- 

 ash, which was soluble like common soap in water, but this lac afforded an im- 

 perfect soap. 



It is well known that bees-wax burns without affording almost any smoke or 

 smell, and produces a steady light. I did not find that white lac, united with oil 

 of olive, formed a wax little inferior to bees-wax, which is said to be the case 

 with the pe-la of the Chinese. By this union, I made white lac whiter and as 

 soft as bees-wax ; but it still afforded smoke, a resinous smell, and an unsteady 

 light, as before. Water extracted nothing from pure bees-wax. Nitrous acid, 

 in the cold, only rendered it white ; but, on boiling, the lac wholly dissolved, 

 and like the white lac, on cooling, it separated, and was rendered white. Oil of 

 turpentine, and sulphuric ether formed compounds with bees-wax similar to 

 those with white lac. The solution of bees-wax in sulphuric ether, on evapo- 

 ration left a white powdery substance, which on melting was found to be com- 

 mon yellow wax. 



Alcohol, the specific gravity of which to water was as 835 to 1000, dissolved 

 bees-wax with much more difficulty, and in much smaller proportion, than white 

 lac. By digestion in this menstruum, of the temperature of 130° to 140°, it 

 appeared that bees-wax was totally soluble ; but the same wax, by repeated diges- 

 tions became more and more difficultly soluble ; and yet it did not appear that 

 the last portion of wax was different in its other properties from wax which 

 had not been digested. On evaporation of this solution to dryness, a white sub- 

 stance in a powdery form remained, which being melted was yellow wax. Bees- 

 wax, on decomposition by fire, in close vessels, with the hydro-pneumatic appa- 

 ratus affixed, yielded resembling or nearly similar substances to those obtained on 

 the analysis of white lac by fire ; for 1800 grs. of bees-wax gave 1200 grs. of 

 white butyraceous oil, with a little thin brown oil, and a very small quantity of 

 water and acid; and a very large quantity of hydrogen and carbonic acid gaz, 

 with which was probably mixed nitrogen gaz ; but an accident prevented me from 

 determining the presence of this last gaz. In the retort there remained only 

 about 10 grs. of carbonaceous matter. The smell of the empyreumatic oils was 

 very different from those of white lac. 



3. White lac appears to have the same kinds of affinity as bees-wax; but 



